Sheekh Kebabs; The HaloodieFoodie Way

These famous savoury appetizers are a stapleof Indian restaurants, but are notoriously difficult to replicate at home. I’ve experimented with different mixes and, through trial and error, have perfected a simple and effective method of producing batch after batch of piquant, melt in the mouth Sheekh Kebabs.

I prepared the Sheekh kebabs with normal lamb mince (from the offcuts), as it has an appropriate meat to fat ratio 80:20%. If your meat doesn’t have enough fat, the kebabs will be dry, If there’s too much fat they will fall off the skewers during cooking. Ask your butcher to mince the meat twice, as it gives a finer texture to the kebabs. The mutton from the butcher will have a mottled fat appearance running through the mince.

DO NOT WASH THE MEAT!!!
It’s against the traditional teaching of Indian mothers but trust me you have to throw away the rule book for these kebabs!!! The idea behind this is to ensure that we have a sticky, fatty mix that will adhere to your skewers. Any sort of moisture is the enemy of all kebabs!

Preparation Method

1. Finely chop the two onions and squeeze out the excess liquid using a muslin cloth.
2. Add the remaining ingredients and knead very thoroughly until the meat has the consistency of chappati/bread dough. You could use a food mixer with a dough hook to ensure an even mix.

3. When the kebab mix sticks to your fingers the mix is ready to be loaded onto the skewers. You may want to dry fry a small batch to check the seasoning is correct. Remember they will taste much fattier when cooked in a pan compared to when it’s been cooked over a hot grill or a tandoor.

4. Load the skewers with the kebab mix.
I use 8mm metal skewers in my tandoor, the kebab mix can stick to the 8mm sides easily and the kebabs are not too dense.

4a. Moisten your hands with some water, to ensure that the Kebab mix doesn’t stick to your hands. I kept a bowl of water by my side as I loaded the skewers.

4b. Make a ball of kebab mix and poke through the end of the skewer until you reach approximately 10cm from the tip of the skewers.

4c. Squeezing with the tips of your fingers work your way down the skewer until you have an equal spread across the skewer. Make sure you leave space on the handle side of the skewer.

5. Place the skewers on the BBQ or inside the tandoor. Cooking times will vary depending on the heat of the BBQ/tandoor. Cook until the kebabs become coloured on each side.

6. Once cooked, slide off the kebabs ensuring that the skewers are cleaned at the tip end this will allow for an easy removal of the sheekh kebab.

Additional instructions for tandoor users.Use a piece of potato as a heat shield to ensure that the potatoes burn and not the precious kebabs!!

You can also substitute lamb for chicken (use thigh meat, not breast) or mutton/beef. You can purchase Shan Sheekh Kebab masala mix from most Asian grocery stores or online here: I hope you enjoy the kebabs, please don’t forget to subscribe and keep updated with the work of the HaloodieFoodie!!
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